Mood Ring
by monkeyface52
Summary: Allison Blake is not happy. Countless reviews. A manipulative ex-husband. A stupid ring stuck on her finger. Oh, and then there is the crazy weather threatening to destroy Eureka...MUCH better than my last Eureaka fanfic! R&R!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** So, this is me trying to make up for the crumminess that happened with Love Shack of Doom. This one will be much MUCH shorter! I promise! I already have it done :)

_**One**_

"Do you like it, dad?"

Jack Carter looked at the lumpy circular object with a bizarre black stone his daughter was holding in front of his face.

"Uh, yeah," he managed without laughing. "It's the nicest…thing like that I've ever seen."

"Da-ad!" Zoe sighed, rolling her eyes impatiently. "You just have bad taste."

"Apparently" he chuckled, taking a sip of his coffee. The door to Café Diem opened and Allison Blake breezed in. His throat suddenly tight, Jack had to spit the coffee back in his cup to keep from choking.

"Dad? You okay?" Zoe asked, concerned.

"Fine," he sputtered, covering his mouth as he coughed.

Zoe turned around and spotted Allison. Looking back at her dad with a knowing smile, she said, "Or maybe not so bad taste."

Giving her a warning glance, Jack took his attention away from the door and put it back on his coffee. No sooner had he done that, the woman who'd caused all the commotion in the first place came sauntering up behind him.

"Hey Carter. Haven't seen you around lately. You wouldn't be avoiding me, would you?"

Tightening his grip on his mug, Jack turned to her and forced himself to smile. "GD has been incident free for a week now. I'd think not seeing me around would be a good thing."

"I'll second that," a deep voice spoke up.

Clenching his jaw, Jack noticed Nathan Stark standing behind Zoe.

"Hey, Dr. Stark! Check out my extra credit project I made for my Cultural Studies class!" Zoe beamed, handing Nathan the object.

Jack frowned at her. "Extra credit? You didn't tell me it was extra credit. Why do you need extra credit?"

"Um, do you like it?" Zoe asked Nathan, obviously avoiding her father's question.

"It's a very nice…thing," Nathan said.

"Ugh! What is wrong with you people?" Zoe cast a disgusted look at Nathan and her dad.

"I agree. Can't you guys tell what this is?" Allison said, grabbing the object from Nathan.

"Obviously not," Nathan told her.

"But I love it anyway," Jack said, smiling at Zoe. She just rolled her eyes.

"It's a mood ring. Wow, I haven't seen one of these in years." Allison held it up to inspect it closer.

"So you invented something that's already been invented?" Jack asked Zoe.

"What kind of extra credit project would _that_ be?" Zoe scoffed.

"The kind that would make you have to do extra credit in the first place." Jack raised an eyebrow at her, but she just shook her head.

"This is a modern mood ring. You know what Twitter is, right?"

"Uh…like what a bird says?"

Zoe laughed and Nathan sighed impatiently. "God, Carter. Don't you ever grow tired of being clueless?"

"Twitter is like an online mini blog where you can post updates through the day about what you're doing, what you're feeling, that kind of stuff."

Leaning his head on his hand, Jack grimaced. "Why would anyone want to do that? Wait, why would anyone want to _read_ that?"

"We're teenagers," Zoe shrugged. "You don't understand most of the stuff we do."

Jack pointed a finger at his daughter. "Now _that_ I can agree with."

"Anyway, the ring is hooked up to a network. That way, whatever the wearer is feeling, it will be broadcast through the system."

"Sort of like an early warning system for all those teenage boys about when and when not to call a girl?" Nathan observed with a smirk. "I wish someone had invented one of those when I was your age. Would have saved me a lot of trouble."

Zoe smiled up at him. "See? This man appreciates my genius."

"Um," Allison said, interrupting their conversation. All three turned to see her with a panicked look on her face. She was yanking at the ring, which seemed to be lodged on her left ring finger. "I can't get this thing off," she muttered.

"Gee, Allison. Hope you're not putting on weight," Jack said with a grin. Her hands froze and she leveled Jack with a look that would make anyone scared, but he was busy looking at her finger. "Did it work? Didn't those things used to turn red when you were angry?"

"This one doesn't work like that," Zoe explained as she stood up and attempted to help Allison. "The info is only digital and, so far, it's only in theory. I haven't gotten the stupid thing to do anything except send random signals that seem to have nothing to do with emotion." Throwing Allison's hand down, Zoe wiped a stray strand of hair from her face. "Let's go try soap. This is due this morning."

As the two rushed off, Jack turned back to Stark.

"What are you up to this morning, Stark? Planning on taking over a small country? Or maybe you're going to kick puppies in the name of science."

"Funny," Nathan said sarcastically, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Ally and I have a report due to the Pentagon that we need to get finished up."

"Since when does writing a report take two people?"

A wicked grin on his face, Nathan leaned in close to Jack. "Haven't you figured it out by now, Carter? We love doing everything together."

With a chuckle, Nathan strolled back to the door, leaving Jack sitting at the counter, his temperature steaming more than the coffee in his hands.

**End Note:** Well, do you want more? Let me know!


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: **Thanks to you two wonderful readers who sent in reviews! I figure two reviews is a great sign that I should post chapter two :)

_**Two**_

Walking into the women's bathroom at GD, Allison sighed, running a hand through her long brown hair. She had so much to do and felt like there was no time to do it in. And then there was the ring lodged on her finger. Moving to the sink, she made another attempt at lathering it up so it would slip off.

No such luck. She'd called Zoe's teacher and explained the situation, so Zoe was in the clear. But still, how was she going to get the darn thing off, short of a hacksaw?

Pre-occupied, she moved back to the bathroom door and opened it.

"Boo!" Jack yelled, standing right in her face. Allison screamed, stumbling backwards. Her face grew red as he doubled over in laughter.

"Carter! What are you doing?" she screamed.

He took a few steps into the bathroom, then grabbed her hand. Glancing at the ring, he snapped his fingers. "Darn! I thought scaring you might change the color or something."

"You know, these things are supposed to respond to positive emotions as well," she told him, putting her hands on her hips.

"Come on. I thought you said you missed me."

"I said I hadn't seen you around. I didn't say anything about missing you."

"Oh, but I could read it in your eyes."

Narrowing her eyes and tilting her head to the side, she tapped her fingers impatiently. "And what are my eyes saying now?"

Jack backed up slowly, putting his hands in the air. "All right, I get your drift."

Allison followed him out and began walking, Jack by her side. "What are you doing here, anyway?"

"Fargo called. Some crisis or something. You know Fargo, though. Someone taking his parking spot warrants a call to the police."

"And you thought you'd find him in the women's bathroom?" Allison asked with a smirk as they turned a corner.

"Well, I _may_ have seen you going in and _may_ have decided to try and scare you."

"I would think, as Sheriff, you'd have much more important things to do than play silly little games, Carter."

He laughed. "Slow crime day."

"Which equals harassing me?"

Jack smiled. "It was you or Stark, and you're much cuter when you're annoyed."

"Smooth, Carter." She was trying to play it cool, but felt her face heating at the compliment. If she thought he wouldn't notice, she was wrong.

"Wow, I thought the ring was supposed to turn red when you were embarrassed. But if your face is any indication--"

"Miss Blake!" a harried voice called from behind them. The turned to see Fargo hurrying down the hall.

"Slow down, Fargo. Where's the fire?" Jack asked.

"You already know about the fire?"

Jack and Allison exchanged a look. "What are you talking about?" Allison asked, a dull throb forming in her head.

"At the Ecosphere station!"

Allison rubber her eyes while Jack looked back and forth between them, confused. "Ecosphere? Like on that movie Biodome?"

"You saw that?" Fargo asked, trying not to laugh.

"Hey, I was trying to impress a girl," Jack defended.

"A girl who likes Pauly Shore?"

"Guys!" Allison snapped, holding a hand up. "Can we get back to this fire, please? Fargo, I thought the Ecosphere project was on hold due to lack of funding. Why would there be a fire? Nobody should even be out there."

"Apparently a couple of people went over for maintenance. Something about sprucing it up so, when you did inspections, you might be able to throw a little money their way."

"These people never stop," Allison sighed.

"Well, I didn't get all the details, but apparently there was a lightening storm and--"

"Lightning?" Jack cut it. "But there hasn't been a cloud in the sky all day."

Allison and Fargo both looked at Jack. Then Allison sighed. "I'd better get over there. Carter, I'll explain on the way. Fargo, would you tell Dr. Stark where I'm going? He can get started on the report without me."

"Sure thing."

As they parted ways, Jack looked down at Allison's ring finger. "Hmm, still black. But if I could guess, I would say you're feeling--"

"Carter, just go out there and get your jeep."

He frowned. "Wow. I wonder what color they have for bossy?"

In the car, Allison filled Jack in on the Ecosphere project.

"You've seen things like it on movies and TV, right?" she asked him.

"Sure. Some giant glass bubble where they create their own environment and pretty much live cut off from the rest of the world."

"Basically. Well, during the Cold War, Eureka developed it's own ecosphere. Only, it was much bigger than those little ones you see on TV."

Jack didn't like where this was going. "How much bigger?"

"When activated, it covers the whole town."

"What!? I'm living in a bubble?"

Allison laughed. "Don't be so dramatic. Do you know how much it would cost to constantly sustain an ecosphere that size?"

"Well, I didn't get the pay raise I was expecting this year, so--"

"It isn't a giant plastic bubble like what you see you TV. We have a technology that allows us to turn on and off an electric wall that essentially acts as a force field. The whole point was to protect the town during a possible war situation."

"Because where would we be without the people who made those bombs in the first place?" Jack sarcastically asked with a smirk.

Allison just glared at him. "Anyway, the project was shelved after the Cold War ended because it was costing so much. But there have been a couple of hard core fans who petition every year to get it on board again."

"And how does all this relate to lightning on a perfectly sunny day?" Jack asked as they reached the edge of town and Allison directed him to a dirt road.

"Part of the Ecosphere is controlling the weather within its confines. I'm guessing something went wrong at the control station."

"Controlling the weather? Sounds like playing God to me."

With half a smile, Allison said, "God would never set himself on fire."

**End Note:** Love it? Hate it? Review it!


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: In case you didn't pick up on this, I'm trying to recapture the light hearted Jack/Allison feelings that we all loved in Season 1 (which I hear might be back in Season 3 - coming so soon!)**

**And did I mention Eureka isn't mine? Cause it isn't.**

**Thanks for all the reviews and I hope you keep reading!**

_**Three**_

Entering the shack-like run down station, they were assaulted by the acrid smell of smoke and fire-extinguisher foam.

"This place looks awful," Carter mumbled, stepping over some random pieces of rusted equipment scattered on the floor.

"You should have seen it last year," Allison coughed, wiping her eyes as she kicked an empty box out of her way. "It was even worse."

Turning a corner, they stumbled upon three soot-covered scientists huddled around a half melted monitor.

"This is useless!" one of them exclaimed, running his hands through his singed hair. "There's no way we're getting it back online before she gets here."

"I'll bet Dr. Stark would have showed a little more mercy," another mumbled.

Allison cleared her throat, causing the three of them to spin around.

"Dr. Blake!" the first one squeaked. "Sheriff Carter! W-What are you two doing here?"

"We brought smores," Carter sarcastically replied, putting his hands on his hips. "What do you think we're doing here?"

"You shouldn't have been here in the first place," Allison scolded. The man who longed for Dr. Stark lowered his eyes, his face turning red. "I told you, submit it to me in writing and--"

"But we have some great ideas and thought if we could give you an actual demonstration.." But the stern look Allison gave him cut him off.

"There's a way to go about these things, gentlemen. And this is _not_ it. Someone could have been seriously hurt, all because of something you hoped might happen." The words were meant to make them feel like school children, and it worked. One by one the men hung their heads in shame.

"You're kind of scary, you know that?" Carter whispered in her ear.

Allison fought a smile. "Now let's get out of here. I think you know what my response is going to be to your proposal."

Shuffling to grab the brown, curled papers lying around, they looked like the Three Stooges, bumping and jostling one another in their attempt to be quick.

With a frustrated sigh, Allison stepped forward, reaching to turn off the computer.

"Allison, wait!" Jack called. But it was too late. When she touched the computer with her left hand, a flash of bright blue combined with the sound of an electric zap and a loud gasp from Allison.

Allison was propelled backwards and Jack leapt forward just in time to catch her. "Oh my God, Allison! Are you okay?"

Eyes wide, she shook her head, cradling her left hand to her chest. "I'm fine. It wasn't too bad."

If the three men had looked contrite before, they were absolutely devastated now.

"Hope you guys are happy," Carter growled, standing Allison up and putting his arm around her.

"Let's just get out of here," she said.

He nodded, leading her back out to the jeep.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Jack asked Allison for the third time since they'd been back on the road.

Allison chuckled, sliding further into the seat. "I told you, Carter. I'm fine. Really! It was like a little burst of static electricity, that's all."

Jack didn't look convinced. "I've never seen a bolt of light like that when someone rubs their feet on the carpet. Not to mention the sound."

Though her left hand was still tingling, she didn't want Carter to worry. "Thanks for being so concerned, but I have way too much to get done today to be electrocuted. The faster you can get me back to GD, the better."

Thinking about all the work she still had to get done refreshed her headache anew. Rubbing her temples, she stared out the window. Suddenly, the car began to tremble. Jack slowed the car down.

"What was that?" Allison asked, frowning.

"Felt like a little tremor. We get a lot of those up here. Nothing to worry about."

"Great," she groaned. "Just what I need to make this day perfect."

"No," Jack corrected with a smile, "A cold beer and a baseball game would make this day perfect."

Shaking her head, Allison couldn't help but laugh. "How do you always stay so calm? So down to earth? The only time I see you break a sweat is when you're running around, trying to keep this place from blowing up."

He shrugged. "I guess I just figure that there's not point in stressing over small things. I've got enough to worry about. You should try it some time."

"Try what?"

"Not carrying the world on your shoulders."

She smirked. "Right…maybe tomorrow." Closing her eyes, she began going over the list of what she would need to do as soon as she got back to her office.

Another small tremor rippled through the ground, causing Allison to sigh in frustration, fighting back the knots forming in her stomach.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Sorry it's been so long! I'm going though this terrible time in life where my inner critic says everything I've written, am writing, or ever will write sucks. My mojo is just – blah. So, I'm trying here and hopefully I'll get this done before Zoe graduates college.**

**And apparently this story is officially AU since the episode that came on last night said, over and over, there are no earthquakes in Eureka. Who knew?**

_**Four**_

"Hey, Jo? Have you listened to the news at all today?" Jack asked Jo after he'd finally dropped Allison off and returned to the station.

"No, why?" the deputy answered, putting down her copy of _Arsenal Monthly._

Jack scratched his head. "Haven't you felt all those tremors today? There's been, like, five."

"Maybe Henry is blowing stuff up. Don't put it past him."

"Yeah, but five times?"

"Like I said, it's Henry." Jo smiled, but just as she did, another rumble shook the ground. The smile melted from her face. "Or maybe not."

Rubbing a hand over his face, Jack turned tired eyes to Jo. She was already standing up.

"I'll grab my gun."

If the cause of the tremors was at Global Dynamics, no one was letting on. In fact, nobody seemed to have noticed at all. Things were buzzing along as usual.

"Should we go talk to Allison?" Jo asked Jack after the two of them had walked around for about five minutes, checking to see if anything were out of the ordinary.

"No, I was with her when they started. If she thought it was GD related, she probably would have said. Besides, she's really stressed out right now. I don't want to bother her with anything else."

"Well," Jo said with a sly smile. "There _is_ someone else you can talk to who always knows what's going on around her."

Jack was already shaking his head no. "The day I ask Stark for help is the day hell freezes over."

"Actually," Fargo's voice spoke up, suddenly behind them. "They're doing some interesting experiments with absolute zero right now. Hell freezing over may be closer than you think!"

Jack rolled his eyes and Jo tried to cover a laugh.

"Fargo, have you guys noticed the tremors that have been rippling through Eureka today?" Jack asked.

Pushing his glasses up on his nose, Fargo said, "No, but then again, we wouldn't."

"Let me guess," Jack sighed. "GD has it's own thing-a-ma-jig that keeps it stable in the event of an earthquake."

"Intelligent, Carter," Jo smirked.

"He's right, though. The building has a uniquely designed foundation that--"

Jack held up his hand. "Fargo, I don't need to hear it." He turned to Jo. "Let's get out of here. Maybe we're just overreacting."

Jack and Jo made their way to the exit, Fargo following them as he ranted about some Battlestar Galactica fanfic he'd read the night before.

At the entrance to GD, however, they slowed down when they noticed a large crowd staring out the glass doors. Pushing their way to the front of the murmuring group, Jack and Jo stopped, their jaws dropping.

"Um…," Jo finally said. "Wasn't it perfectly sunny when we came in?"

Outside, the sky had turned to gray, it was almost black. Thick, dark clouds had completely covered the sun and to say it was raining cats and dogs would be an understatement. The large, fat drops falling at rapid speed from the sky looked like they could seriously hurt a person.

"Okay," Jack said, not able to take his eyes away from the strange spectacle. "Maybe we're not overreacting."

* * *

"Allison!" Carter exclaimed, opening her office door without bothering to knock.

Her back was to the door and she immediately stiffened, but not before Jack noticed her rubbing furiously at her face.

"Don't you know how to knock, Carter," she said in a voice that sounded more sad than angry.

"Sorry." He took a few tentative steps forward. "Um, are you okay?"

She sniffed, the spun around in her chair. Though she was sitting straight and her face was dry, Jack couldn't help but take note of her red-rimmed eyes.

"I'm fine. What do you need? I'm swamped today."

"Uh…it's just, outside…Allison, have you been crying?"

"Carter," she sighed. "Just say what you came in here to say."

Jack shifted from one foot to the other. He didn't want to let the issue drop, but Allison looked like she meant business. "Outside…it's raining."

Allison chuckled dryly. "This warrants you bursting into my office?"

"Don't you remember what the weather was like an hour ago? It was perfect. Not to mention this isn't any ordinary rain. It's like apocalyptic rain! Combine that with the tremors we've been feeling today and I think there's something going on."

Shaking her head in disbelief, Allison turned to her computer and made a few taps with her fingers, pulling up an outdoor security camera feed. She frowned. "Carter…what are you talking about?"

"What?" Closing the space from the door to her desk in three long strides, Carter crouched behind her to see her monitor. "I don't believe it," he mumbled. It was still cloudy, but not like it had been before. And the frightening large drops had changed into a light drizzle, typical to the Northwest.

"Carter…"

"B-But it was crazy! I'm telling you! There were at least 20 witnesses!"

"I don't have time for this," she sighed, standing up, pushing past him.

"Allison!" Jack called, but she was gone. Shoving his hands in his pockets, Jack lowered his head. Apparently he was going to have to figure this out without her.

Jo was waiting by the entrance when Jack arrived.

"Did you see it, Carter? The rain just…stopped!" Jo exclaimed.

"Yeah, I noticed."

"What did Allison say?"

He shook his head. "She didn't even believe me. Let's just get out of here."

"You know," Jo said with a smile, following Carter out the giant glass door. "There _is_ someone else you could talk to--"

"Shut up, Jo."

As the two made their way back to the jeep, Jack studied the sky, which was growing light and lighter by the minute.

Why had Allison been crying?

It didn't make sense, the ground shaking and then the strange rain. Something was definitely up.

It was probably Stark, that selfish jerk. What did she see in him, anyway?

He should talk to Henry. Henry would know what was going on.

Just as they climbed in, the ground trembled once more. Jack and Jo froze, staring at each other.

"Carter—"

"Let me talk to Henry first, Jo. Then, I promise. I'll…" here, he cringed, as though tasting something sour and bitter, "talk to Stark."

Looking satisfied, Jo smiled as the two climbed in just as the sun broke through.

**End Note: For all of you who've reviewed, dying for a little more Jack/Allison action, I promise I will work it in when my brain decides to work again.**


End file.
